iPhone – It’s July. Don’t ever buy an iPhone in July

Are you getting tired of your iPhone? Are you getting bored with your almost two year old iPhone 11? Or are you more like my wife and me, with vintage iPhone 6S Pluses dating back to 2015? Do you yearn for a new camera, faster apps, more storage, and longer lasting battery?

Well, I have six words for you: Don’t buy an iPhone in July.

The very first iPhone was introduced in 2007. Ever since then, Apple has introduced new iPhones on a yearly cadence. It’s as if it took a page from annual car model introductions. Do you have a 2019 Dodge or a 2020 Dodge? Each car year brings minor improvements and/or some serious redesigns.

I used to lease Subaru Foresters for my business, upgrading them every two years. I really loved those cars and drove them for a decade and a half. But what killed my commitment was when Subaru redesigned the driver’s seat so that it was no longer comfortable for me.

I stopped upgrading my iPhone every two years when Apple took away the headphone jack with the iPhone 7. I use that jack all the time, particularly for recording videos. When the model year upgrade disappointed me, I just settled in for the long haul.

Anyway, like I said, it’s July. Maybe you are going out more these days. Wouldn’t it be great to beat the summer doldrums, take a nice ride over to the Apple Store, and pick up a brand new shiny iPhone?

No. Absolutely not. No. No. No. No. Look at this chart.

As you can see, 42% of all iPhone announcements have taken place in the month of September. Another 16% have been in October. The September release cadence becomes even more profound if you look at this next chart.

Every single year, from 2012 through 2019, Apple has introduced new iPhones in September. It probably would have introduced the iPhone 12 in September 2020, but the pandemic knocked everything off its stride. Even with COVID, Apple did its introductions in both October (the iPhone 12 and 12 Pro) and November (the iPhone 12 Pro Max and Mini).

But you can see my point. Apple has set up a release pattern where it discusses upcoming new iOS versions at WWDC in June, giving developers and users some time to prepare new apps. Then it announces and releases new phones, mostly in September, but sometimes in October or November.

What does all that mean? Simple. It’s July. Don’t ever buy an iPhone in July.

So, are you yearning for a new iPhone? When do you plan to get it? What features do you most want to see in an updated iPhone? Let us know in the comments below.

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